Rides 2014 -- add yours

[John Saxby]

Sam and Anto, glad you enjoyed my thoughts & fotos from a week's riding.  Andre, you might consider taking your sketchbook & watercolours to the County in the spring or fall: the Bay of Quinte, on the north side of the island, is one of the biggest waterfowl rest-and-feed stops along the Great Lakes, during the birds' migrations northwards & southwards. Not sure if you'd get quite the same effect as the big swans offer, but who knows?

[Andre Jute]

I might at that, John. My in-laws took a train journey across Canada that they talked about for quite a while. Canada, as a whole, is one of the unspoiled frontiers. Interesting how Canadians get to be extra-discriminating.

[John Saxby]

Be delighted to welcome you and yours, Andre.  The distances are vast, so you might want to choose a few spots in which to spend some time -- I've found that here, as so often elsewhere, most places are best explored slowly, on foot, by bike, by canoe, etc.  The trains can be a good way of moving from one place to another, but our rail system is very primitive, by comparison with Europe.

[Andre Jute]

Be delighted to welcome you and yours, Andre.  The distances are vast, so you might want to choose a few spots in which to spend some time -- I've found that here, as so often elsewhere, most places are best explored slowly, on foot, by bike, by canoe, etc.  The trains can be a good way of moving from one place to another, but our rail system is very primitive, by comparison with Europe.

Thanks, John. We can but dream.

[geocycle]

I'm on tour again! Crossed the New Forest today after work in Southampton and will get early ferry from Poole to Cherbourg tomorrow! Met a blue raven tour owner running the train along the pier at hythe. Was it anyone on here? Will add photos later.

[jags]

how much later im watching rambo then its bed time ,

jags

[Etienne]

Back from a small 3 days tour - on the Isle of Wright .... 

[geocycle]

The tour continues... A few interim thoughts pending report. Normandy is largely flat, Brittany largely isn't. My bike looks like it's been across the Serengeti, not France because of the dust generated on the voie Verte tracks. Most of Europe doesn't do Lycra and I'm now officially post-padded shorts for touring.

[JimK]

Strange ride today. The basic plan was to ride over to Rhinebeck to meet a friend for lunch: 25 miles or so total. Might as well stop along the way to drop some stuff at my storage unit. I order tires from bike24 sometimes. The shipping is rather high but its a flat rate, so I like to order a bunch of stuff. A month or so ago I got Schwalbe Marathon Almotion tires for my partner's bike and for my bike too. Then, why not, a spare Mondial and a bunch of spare inner tubes. I put the Almotion tires on our bikes a couple weeks ago & the rest was headed into storage today.

Well, maybe two miles into the ride, thumpa thumpa, rats, what's this, ouch, a huge sheet metal screw right through, yes, right through a brand new Marathon Almotion tire, in the back. The front tire must have kicked it up just perfectly for the rear to land on it perfectly. Going to be late for lunch in Rhinebeck!

There is a pizza place right there. We are still sorting out the pizza routine in our new location. I have been meaning to try this place. It's quite busy at lunch time! So I got lots of comments as I fixed the tire with an audience. I decided to treat the experience as a bit of an omen. I replaced the Almotion with the Mondial that was in my pannier. Probably the Almotion is OK. I can easily see the hole where the screw went through, but being a round hole it didn't cut too many cords. Unlike my flat maybe six weeks ago, where I got a quarter inch slide through the Marathon Supreme!

Three years in Woodstock and I had zero flats. Six months in Kingston and two nasty flats! The roads are really nasty! I am looking forward to completion of a local bridge replacement:

http://www.dailyfreeman.com/general-news/20140430/bridge-replacement-projects-in-saugerties-hurley-take-priority

which will reopen access to many routes without traversing some of the nasty stretches. Still, there aren't many bridges across the Esopus! It was the Washington Avenue bridge in Kingston where I ran over that stupid screw today!

Then as I continued on my way after my tire repair, I started encountering cyclists going the other way. A group of three, one lone fellow, another, then a group of maybe six. I did a U-turn - I am *really* going to be late for lunch - but I had to find out what all these people were doing! Aha!

http://www.ptny.org/hudsontour/index.shtml

It's the sister ride to that Erie Canal ride we did a couple years ago. Maybe a hundred folks on this Hudson Valley ride. They were all eating lunch in Rhinebeck! The little town was mobbed with bicycles still by the time I got there!

[geocycle]

That's tough luck Jim. I'm sure the statisticians will tell us it's all to do with probabilities, but I've lost count how many times I've punctured within a week of a new tyre. Then no problems for thousands of miles. It is chance and some objects will get you whatever, although I do think tyres get some hardening with use. I once drove a 1964 landrover down the African rift valley across sharp lava flows with another guy in a land cruiser. He had 4 punctures I had none!

[Andre Jute]

Three years in Woodstock and I had zero flats. Six months in Kingston and two nasty flats! The roads are really nasty!

Expensive morning, that, Jim. And irritating, with a new tire, especially if it can't be saved.

Makes me appreciate my lanes even more: even if they're potholed and rough, at least there isn't sharp rubbish on them.

[Andre Jute]

Anybody ever notice that events conspire against cyclists in ways that do not affect the rest of the population, well except perhaps young lovers wanting to go on a secluded picnic?

Monday and Tuesday this week were perfect cycling days, and my pedal pals were free, but I was in hospital for stress tests. The purpose of these Holter and stress tests are literally to decide whether they can tell me, "Bugger off, carry on cycling, you healthy, fit, fellow. We have sick people who need our attention more than you do." But they do it on what might well be two of the ten best cycling days of the year! I read them a mini-lecture on putting their minds in gear, keeping their eye on the ball, etc, but they just chuckled and said, "Any more of that, sir, and we'll take your blood pressure again — and keep you in until it starts raining again." At least they were pretty and entertaining.

Another fine day. Off to make up for two missed days. Ciao.

[brummie]

I didn't spot any Thorns, &  I have to admit I wasn't on mine this time round ( chose the fixie ) - but here is a brief film by Damon Peacock about some strange happenings up T'North this weekend.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ILsro8ay0Qo

[JimK]

Thanks - a really friendly bunch, the way it came across!

[jags]

I didn't spot any Thorns, &  I have to admit I wasn't on mine this time round ( chose the fixie ) - but here is a brief film by Damon Peacock about some strange happenings up T'North this weekend.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ILsro8ay0Qo

brummi thanks for that i seen a lot of that guys videos he great,
btw that woman at the end who won a prize i think she has a vidoe on reviewing the akto up on the moors if not she has a double.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mvvC8G1ACa4